Cleaning or laundry machine



Dec. 12, 1950 L. M. KAHN 2,533,888

CLEANING OR LAUNDRY MACHINE Filed Dec. 23, 1943 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 'IIlIl/IIIIIIIIIIII I! ll m 1 VENTOR. LEoMKAH/v 5 UM/ g fwaw Dec. 12, 1950 KAHN 2,533,888

CLEANING 0R LAUNDRY MACHINE WAHING CYLINDER f l. Cl? r Zo MOTOR 1 GEARINCI 4/ UNIT 74 /75 I72 /5& CAM DRUM {1 Box I H f /74 I 84/ 46 /60 I56 *5 INVENTOR.

LEOI'VKAHN' B Dec. 12, 1950 L. M. KAHN CLEANING OR LAUNDRY MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet Filed Dec. 23, 1943 INVENTOR. LE0 MKAH/v :T TORNE Y Patented Dec. 12, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE The present invention relates to cleaning or laundry machines and more particularly to such machines having a cylinder in which the soiled articles have been placed and which rotates at one speed for one cleaning operation and at a considerably higher speed for another cleaning operaton.

In conventional laundry machines, the articles to be washed are placed ,in a cylinder which is then rotated for a selected period at a relatively low speed, in a shell or housing filled with the cleaning fluid, such as soap and water; the articles tumbling about in the cylinder by reason of its motion to be thereby thoroughly washed or cleaned.

After th s washing operation, the washed or cleaned articles carried in the cylinder are rinsed and the cyfinder then rotated at a somewhat higher speed in the absence of any cleaning fluid or water which has been discharged from the shell, to extract therefrom moisture, which has saturated the articles in the washing and rinsing operation. Due to the fact that the artcles do not distribute themselves uniformly about the inside of the cylinder against the inner face thereof, as they are thrown thereagainst by the centrifugal force generated by its rotation, a relatively large imb lance results causing the machine to shudde and shake, that is vibrate excessively. Th s further limits both the operative size of the cylinder and reduces the speed at which it may be rotated for the moisture extracting operation, since the resulting imbalance would otherwise be increased beyond practical operative limits, particularly in the relatively light machines built for household use.

The present invention, therefore, contemplates the provision of a means which will uniformly arrange the articles in the cylinder for a moisture extracting operation so that imbalance will be substantially eiminated or for practical purposes reduced when the cylinder is operated for the moisture extracting operation. The provision of such a means not only permits the use of a larger cylinder than heretofore possible but also makes possible considerably greater cylinder rotative speeds resulting in the articles being relatively dry (only damp) when they are removed from the laundry machine in contradistinction to the relatively moist condition of such articles, when removed from prior art laundry machines.

In most laundry machines which are so operated as a centrifuge to extract moisture, the articles thereafter removed therefrom will still be moist enough to require hanging up to dry.

My invention, therefore, further contemplates the provision of means for fluff drying" the articles by circulating a stream of air, prefer-- ably heated, through the cylinder containing them after the moisture extracting operation has been completed and the cylinder again operated at low speed.

The present invention still further contemplates the provision of means for automatically actuating in sequence operation, the laundry machine to accomplish the washing, rinsing, moisture extracting and fluff drying operation.

The present invention yet further contemplates the provision of means whereby the washing, rinsing and moisture extracting operation may be automatically repeated before automatically commencing the fluiT drying operations.

The present invention still further contemplates provi' mg a member, which is normally positioned at the outer end of the cylinder for each of the washing, rinsing and fluff drying operations and is movable toward the inner end of the cylinder for the moisture extracting operation. Means are further provided for automatically moving the member into these respective positions for the corresponding cylinder operation, the member being of such form and construction as to facilitate uniform, even and proper distribution of the articles in the cylinder as it is operatively rotated. I

The present invention also contemplates the provision of an automatic control means for the sequence operation of various parts of a cleaning Fig. 3 is a section of an air piston operated water inlet valve that may be used for the practice of my invention;

Fig. 4 is a section of an air operated dump valve that may be used in the practice of my invention;

Fig. 5 is a section in enlarged scale, on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1; i

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a modification of my invention, showing the doors to the interior thereof in open position;

Fig. 7 is a schematic detail of the automatic control means;

Fig. 8 is an end view of one of the cam drums of the control means;

Fig. 9 is a front elevation of the cam drums of the automatic control means;

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of a cam and follower for operating an aircontrol valve;

Fig. 11 is an elevation and partial section of a modification of my invention;

Fig. 12 is a section on the line l2--I2 of Fig. 11;

Fig. l'i is a side elevation of modified cylinder, according to my invention;

Fig. 14 is a modified form of the movable cylinder end member;

Fig. 15 is a further modified form thereof;

Fig. 16 is a modification of my invention.

Referring now to the drawings, the operating elements of a washing machine according to my invention are arranged in a housing it, of any suitable design and construction, the details of which do not form part of the present invention.

Arranged for rotation in the shell. H2, in the interior of the housing it, I provide the conventional cylinder 14 in which the articles are washed or cleaned. This cylinder is perforated and constructed in the conventional manner, the details of which, since they form no part of the invention, need not be shown. It will, of course, be understood that the present invention may as well be applied to a machine having a cylinder which oscillates.

The shell I2 is filled with water by means of the perforated pipe i6, which may be connected in any suitable manner to a source of water supply and which pipe preferably extends at least through the length of the cylinder l4, the valve l8 controlling the flow of the water in the manner to be explained further.

In operation, the source of motive power for the cylinder M, as well as the automatic control, which latter will be explained in greater detail hereinbelow, may be provided by any conventional electric motor 20.

The cylinder operating shaft 22 at one end is journaled in thebearing 24 carried on the cross piece 26 supported in the housing It) and adjacent to the other end is journaled in the hearing 28 carried by the stationary shell l2, which latter is secured to the housing Ill.

The shaft 22 is keyed in any suitable manner at its said other end in the collar 30 on the cyl- I 20, which rotates the cylinder I! through the gear shift box 34, of any well known construction (the purposeof which will be explained) the power drive or varying speed shaft 36 of which is connected to the shaft 22 as by means of the pulleys 38 and All and belt 42. The power input or constant speed shaft 44 ofthe gear shift 34 is connected as by means of a pulley H and belt 43 to power shaft (not shown) of the clutch box 46, included in the automatic control means, the latter generally indicated at 48.

As will be explained the control means 8 automatically closes the dump valve 52, which is norand shaking so that the tity of water to flow through the perforated pipe l6 into the closed shell l2, after which the valve I! is automatically closed to shut off the water sup ly.

Concurrently the cylinder I4 is rotated by the motor at its lower speed, and in order to assure that the articles being washed are carried through the water by the rotation of the cylinder l4, it

(the cylinder) is conventionally provided with the ribs 50, extending down the selected distance in the interior.

After the washing operation has taken place for the selected length of time, the dump valve 52 automatically is permitted to open by the control means '38 so that the water in the shell i2 is discharged through the outlet 54 into the waste water pan to which is connected to a drain by pletely across the cylinder ii and the articles are tumbled about therein by the concurrent rotation thereof, after a selected time each artiv cle will become thoroughly rinsed.

Heretofore, after the rinsing operation, the cylinder H was rotated at a somewhat higher speed in order to centrifugally extract from the articles the .moisture with which they had become saturated. Due to the non-uniform distribution of the articles in the rotating cylinder ll, the rotative, speed thereof was extremely limited.

When the water is discharged from the shell, the wet articlesin the cylinder assume a much smaller volume than they occupied therein when dry, and therefore, they are not uniformly distributed throughout the cylinder causing it to be out of balance when rotating. This imbalance, particularly since the wet articles are now much heavier, causes the rotating cylinder to vibrate.

excessively resulting in the machine chattering operator often must shut it down. it

Such vibration increases with increased diameter and rotative speed of the cylinder, limitation of the latter reducing the amount of moisture extraction.

I have overcome this by providing a member 60 which is normally disposed at the outer end 62 of the cylinder l4 during the washing and rinsing operations. The member 60 is carried on the arm 64 which is supported on the housing l0, as will be further described, for movement toward the other wall 66 of the cylinder.

Upon completion of the rinsing operation the.

control means 48 causes the member to move inwardly thereby forcing the articles against the wall 66. As a result, since the cylinder is concurrently rotated, the articles are pushed by the member into a much smaller space while they are tumbled about to distribute themselves uniformly about the axis of rotation. Thus, the effective volume of the cylinder is reduced to a degree corresponding to the bulk of the concentrated clothes, the term effective volume referring to that volume of the cylinder which is accorded the clothes, or in other words, the volume of the cylinder between the wall 66 and the member 00.

It will also be apparent that the articles are thereby positioned closer to the bearing 28 to reduce the overhanging weight thereof on the bearing so that the out'of balance effect of a rotating cylinder is greatly reduced.

The control means is arranged to again shut the valve I8, the dump valve 52 remaining open, after the rinsing operation and upon moving the member 60 inwardly, the gear shift 34 is operated by the air piston chamber 68, as will be further explained, to throw the arm I0 into high gear and thereby rotate the cylinder I4 at the high peed.

While, in the embodiment here illustrated, I

use only a high and low speed, it will be understood that an intermediate rotative speed may be employed to tumble the articles about prior to moving the member 60 toward the wall 66, and thereby effect a more uniform distribution of the articles about the axis of rotation.

The moisture extracting operation is continued for the selected length of time, resulting in a relatively dainp dry washed article by the centrifuge action of the relatively high speed of rotation of the cylinder.

If desired, air may then be circulated through the shell I2 by means of a conventional fan I2 which is carried on the housing I2 by means of the arms I4. The control means 48 is operated, as will be explained, to move the member 60 back to normal position at the end 62 .of the cylinder and to shift the arm I0 to low gear and concurrently start the fan I2. If, desired, a heating element 16 may be arranged above the air inlet I8 in the fan housing 80 so that warm air is circulated through the shell I2. This operation flufl' drys the washed articles thereby resulting in completely dried articles being removed from the machine.

It is one of the objects of my invention to accomplish the above operations automatically in proper sequence and I, therefore, provide the automatic control means 48 which I shall now describe.

Upon commencing the operation of the motor 20 rotation of the automatic control means shaft is concurrently effected through the drive means, such as a belt which operatively connects the motor shaft 44 to the power shaft (not shown) of the clutch box 46, the details of the latter not being given since it is of any conventional and well known type.

The control means 48 consists of th cam drum 84 arranged on the shaft 86 which is driven through the clutch box 46. As will be further described, the cam drum 84 controls all of the washing and moisture extracting operations and is operated at a relatively low speed through the clutch box 46 so that the entire sequence of washing operations will be completed through one revolution of the cam drum 84. The diameter of the drum 84 is selected of relatively small mags nitude so that it will fit within the housing and therefore must be operated at a comparatively low speed.

The various elements of the washing machine such as the water valve I8, the dump valve 52 and the member 60 are preferably controlled to operate in the selected sequence by compressed air and therefore an air compressor and tank, generally indicated by the rectangle 88 are arranged in the housing I0. The details thereof are conventional and it will be understood that the compressor is automatically operated to maintain the required air pressure in the tank.

The water inlet valve I8 is of a conventional type and is normally closed, except so modified that it is opened by the pressure of air circulated through the pipe line and the dump valve, is also of conventional type, normally open, and likewise modified so that it is closed by the pressure of air circulated through pipe line 9|.

To commence operation of the machine, articles to be washed are placed into the inner cylinder through the doors 92 and 94, which are water tight and seal the shell I 2 when held closed by any suitable latch means 86 and 9B. The outer end 62 of the cylinder I4 is open so that the articles may be inserted into it. The member 60 also is provided with doors I00, which are preferably hinged at I02 intermediately of the member so that they may be swung away from the member 60 to admit the articles into the interior of the cylinder I 4. It will, of course, be understood that the member 60 has been automatically positioned adjacent the outer end 62 of the cylinder prior to the commencement of th sequence of washing operations.

After the inner cylinder has been filled with the articles to be washed and the doors 92, 94 and I00 closed, operation of the motor 20 is started by manually throwing in the electrical switch 3I thereby commencing rotation of cylinder I4 and the control means cam drum 84, which latter is provided at one end with the cam surfaces I 24 and I06, respectively operating the dump and water inlet valves.

As the drum is rotated in the direction of the arrow I08, the cam I06 is brought against the nose IIO of the follower arm II2 which is carried on the pivot rod Ill.

The cam follower arm I I2 is normally tensioned downward by the finger I I6 against which it rides and which extends from the air valve II8, which valve is normally held closed by suitable spring tension.

As the cam I06 engages the nose I I0 the arm is rotated upwardly about the pivot I I4 causing the valve I I8 to be opened and permitting air to circulate through the air inlet pipe I20 and th pipe 90 into the water inlet valve I8.

The inlet valve H8 is provided with an air escape or vent II9, normally open and connected by the finger I2I, secured to the arm 2.. The air escape or vent H9 is spontaneously closed by the finger PM as the arm I I2 is moved up by the cam surface I06 to open the air valve IIO.

As the air enters the chamber I23 (Fig. 3) it forces the piston I25 down against the springs I21, one end of which is connected to the bracket I29 carried by the connecting rod and valve stem I3I, thereby moving the valve gate I 33 away from its seat to open the valve I8 and permit water to flow through the pipe I6.

The water valve I8 will remain open so long as the air valve H8 is held open by the cam surface I06 and cam follower to subject the piston I25 to air pressur from the compressor and tank.

The length of the cam I06 is selected, of dimension such that the cam follower nose will be released when the shell has been filled with suificient water thereby permitting the air valve II 8 and the vent or air escape I I9 to open, which latter permits air to be expelled by the piston I25 so that it may be returned to normal position by the spring I21 to shut the valve I8.

As pointed out, the dump valve 52 is normally held open and therefore it must be closed just prior to filling the shell I4 with water and held closed during the washing operation.

- aoaaeas which therefore need not be described or illustrated. The camfollower (not shown) of this valve is engaged and operated by the cam I24 arranged on the drum 84 between the end thereof and the cam I86 in'advance thereof so that the dump valve 82 will be closed before the water valve I8 is opened by the cam I86.

Referring ,now to Fig. 4, the gate I26 of the dump valve is hinged to the lug I28 and is normally held open by the spring 53. As the corresponding air valve (not shown) is opened by the cam I24, air is admitted through the pipe 8| into the chamber I31, forcing the piston I38 down from its normal position. I

The piston rod I4! is connected to the ear I43 of the gate I28, to which ear the spring 58 is secured, by means of the pin I45 which rides in the slot I41.

Downward movement of the piston I38 swings the gate I26 against the spring I 35 in which position it is held by air pressure so long as air is admitted to the chamber l3'l. I v

The cylinder I4 is then rotated with the dump valve 52 held closed for the required period of time to wash the articles, whereupon the laundry machine is automatically arranged to accomplish the rinsing operation. This is done by first opening the dump valve 52 to discharge the dirty,w ater from the shell I2.

. 8 thereof form a bearing on which the wall 82 may be Joumaled to thereby support the rotating cylinder I4 at each end.

In orderto circulate air into the piston cylinder I34 I arrange on the cam drum 84 the cam .I36 which through a cam follower opens an air valve (such as valve II8) which is connected to the cylinder inlet I38. Air forces the piston I38 forward, carrying the member 68 into moisture extracting position, where it is held by the air pressure admitted by the valve.

At this time the cylinder I2 is rotated at its highest speed so that it serves as a centrifuge for the moisture extracting operation and the arm I8 is moved into the high speed position to properly shift the gears in the gear box 84. This is accomplished by arranging a cam I 42 on .the drum 84 to operate an air valve (such as III) which admits air into the piston chamber 68 to move the arm 18 into high speed position.

After the cylinder I4 has been rotated at high speed for the selected length of time to extract moisture from the articles, air is shut off from the chamber 68 when the cam follower rides off from the cam I42, thereby permitting the arm 18, which is controlled by spring I 58, to return to ber 68 is returned to its outermost position against The dump valve 52 is opened when air is shut off from the chamber I31 when the controlling lease of its cam follower from the cam I24, which permits return of the piston I38 to its normal position by the spring I35.

Therefore, the cam I24 is just long enough to hold the dump valve closed during the washing operation.

When sumcient time has elapsed toopen the dump valve and release the water from the shell, the inlet water valve I8 is again opened by compressed air which is directed thereto by the cam I28 and an-air valve (not shown but similar to valve H8) which it controls.

It will be recognized that throughout these operations the cylinder I4 is being rotated so that the articles are tumbled-about while clean water is sprayed over them and circulated through the shell I2.

After the rinsing-operation has been performed for the selected time, the valve I8 is again closed when the corresponding cam follower is released by the cam I28.

In order to shorten the length of the cylinder I4 for a moisture extracting operation and thereby prevent any imbalance in the rotation thereof the member 68 is moved toward the outer cylinder wall 66 as the cylinder I4 continues to rotate. The member 68 thereby carries the articles with it forcing them to distribute themselves about the axis of cylinder rotation betweenthe across the housing on the outside thereof. The

piston cylinder I34 may extend from the crosspiece into the interiors of the shell to support the connecting arm 64 as it pushes the member 68 forward and, if desired, may on the exterior the end 62 of the' cylinder I4.

This is accomplished by first shutting off air through the inlet I38 to the piston I38 when the corresponding air valve (notshown) is closed as it is released by cam I36 to permit the piston I38 to be returned to its normaloutermost position in the cylinder I34. The return of the piston is accomplished by means of the cam I44 which engages a corresponding cam follower controlling an air' valve (such as II8) which admits air through the inlet I46 to the cylinder I34 (see Fig. 5). The air forces the piston I38 toward the outer endof the piston cylinder thereby carrying the member 68 with it to normally position it against the wall 62, whereupon the cam follower rides off of the cam I44.

It will be understood that the member 68 rotates along with cylinder I2 and therefore to prevent corresponding movement of the piston I38 andiconnecting rod 64, I connect them to gether by any suitable means such as the ball I48 on the end of the connecting rod housed in the socket I58 extending from the member 68.

' Where it is. desired to provide a fluff,drying arrangement I provide the cam I52 on the drum 84 which operates an air valve (such as I I6) connected to the clutch box 46 and throws the shaft I54 carrying the drum I56 into operation and disconnects the shaft 86. The cam I52 is arranged so that it' is positioned just beyond the forward nose I58 of the cam I86 so that they will .open and the cylinder I4 still rotated. The drum I56 is provided with the cam I68 which controls an air valve I62 which opens a switch which concurrently starts operation of the heater I6 and fan 12. It will be understood, of course, that the heater 16 may be eliminated and cold air circulated through the shell. As the air is circulated through the shell I2, the cylinder I4 is concurrently being rotated, thereby tumbling the articles about and completely exposing them to the air.

Upon completion of the fluff drying operation, the cam I64 on the drum I56 upon completing a revolution engages an air valve (such as. II6) which returns the clutch to position to operate the shaft 86, to its original starting position.

Operation of the machine is stopped (Fig. 9) as by means of a relay I66 which is thrown by the return of the arm I61 with the clutch 46 to open the switch 3 I. 1

In certain cases, where the articles to be cleaned are more soiled than usual, the operator of my laundry or cleaning machine may desire to repeat the washing or cleaning operation before finally subjecting the articles to the fluff drying operation.

I have schematically illustrated in Fig. 7, a means whereby the control means 48 maybe set so that the entire washing, rinsing and damp drying operations are automatically repeated by my machine before the automatic control means 48 automatically arranges it to perform the fluff drying operation.

To accomplish this, I arrange between the air valve I68 and the clutch 46 in the pipe line IIII leading thereto, a manually operated or hand set by-pass I12.

To repeat the washing operations the valve I12 is set so that air normally admitted by the valve I68, under the influence of the cam I52, to the corresponding gear shift plunger (not shown) of the gear shift 46, is by-passed therefrom so that the drive is not shifted to operate the drum I56.

As a result the machine continues to operate with the drum 84 again commencing a complete revolution, automatically operating in sequence the water inlet valve, the dump valve, the movable member and the gear shift.

Since the by-pass I12 is hand set, it must be automatically reset after the second run of the drum 84 is commenced so that when the revolution thereof is again completed, air from the valve I68 will not again be by-passed but will be operating the gear shift 46 so that the drum I56 will be operated in proper sequence.

I accomplish this by arranging on the drum 84, a cam I74, which operates the air valve I'l6 (such as valve II8) to admit air through pipe I18 and actuate a plunger (not shown) which resets or closes the by-pass H2. The drum I56 will then be shifted into operation by the clutch 46, since the air from the valve I68 will not be by-passed and it (the drum I56) is then completely rotated, the cam I64 at the completion operating the air valve I80 (such as valve H8) to shift the clutch box 46 and return the drum 84 into rotative operation again and concurrently shut oil the motor 20, as previously described.

It will be recognized that the entire automatic operation is accomplished by means of compressed air alone which provides a particularly safe mechanism for use with a cleaning machine in which a relatively highly volatile explosive cleaning compound is employed.

Referring now to Fig. 6, I have there shown a modification of my invention in which the doors 92 and 94 on the end of the housing I and the corresponding doors I00 on the member 60 have been eliminated. With this construction, the cylinder (not shown) may be filled from the top through the door I82 011 .8 side of the housing I84 10 to which it may be locked and sealed by any suitable latch means I86. The rotatin cylinder (not shown) is also provided on one side'with a corresponding latched door I88.

Referring now to Figs. 11 and 12, I have shown there a modification of my invention in which the movable member I89 is moved toward the end wall I9I of the rotating cylinder I93 by means of the springs I90.

Extending at each quadrant from the member I89 between the cutaway portions thereof into which the ribs I fit, I provide the ears I92. which reciprocate in the slots I94. One end of the springs I90 is secured to the ears I92 on the movable member I89 and the other end to the ears I96 on the stationary wall I9I so that, unless restrained, the springs will spontaneously pull the member I89 toward the cylinder end wall I9I for the moisture extracting operation. v

The member I89 is pulled toward and held at the outer end l9I of the cylinder against the tension of the springs I90 by any suitable means such as the cable I98, which i secured to the socket 200 on the movable member at its centre, so that the member may rotate with the cylinder without affecting the cable.

The cable I98 passes over the pulley 202 carried by the bracket 204 on the housing 206 and is, normally held taut to pull the member I89 into normal position at the front wall of the rotating cylinder by any suitable means such as the wound cable drum 208, which is automatically released at the proper time by a suitable air valve BID. The air valve 2I0, after completion of the moisture extracting operation, then permits the cable drum 208 to pull the member to its normal position.

Referring now to Fig. 13, I have there illustrated an embodiment of my invention in which the movable member is dispensed with but in which the cylinder nevertheless'is reduced in volume for the moisture extracting operation.

In this embodiment the rotating cylinder 2I0 comprises two telescopic members the stationary member 2I2, which is rotated by the operating shaft 2 keyed to the collar. 2I6 and the reciprocable member 2I8 to which the piston rod 220 is connected by means of the socket 222.

For the moisture extracting operation, the piston rod 220 moves the member 2I8 towards the member 2I2 to shorten the cylinder and returns it to its normal full cylinder volume forming position illustrated when the moisture extracting operation is completed. I

If, desired, a movable member 224 (Fig. 14), which is convex in cross section, connected to a piston rod 226, may be used so that the articles will be directed toward the center of themtating cylinder as the piston rod moves the member 224 toward the rear wall thereof for the moisture extracting operation.

In Fig. 15, I show a movable member 228 which is concave in cross-section, connected to a piston rod 230, which may be used to direct the articles toward the'outside of the rotating cylinder as the piston rod moves the member 226 toward the rear thereof for the moisture extracting operation.

In another embodiment of my invention, illustrated in Fig. 16, a movable member 232 is normally positioned adjacent one end of the rotating cylinder and a second movable member 234 adjacent the other end of the cylinder. Means are connected respectively to the rod 286 and the rod 238 for automatically moving the acsaeae pletion thereof. While the movable members "are illustrated as concave in cross-section in-Fig. 16, it will be understood that they may be straight or convex inform.

While I have described in specific detail oer-- tain embodiments of my invention, I do not intend to be limited thereto but intend to claim the invention as broadly as the following claims and the state of the prior art will permit, since further modifications thereof will readily occur to those skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. In a laundry machine,a cylinder rotated at a low or tumbling speed for a washing operation and at a substantially higher speed for a moisture extracting operation. means for circulating water into said cylinder, a member normally disposed in a position at one end of the cylinder during the washing operation, means for moving,

said member toward the other end of the cylinder to assume a second position for a centrifugal force moisture extracting operation, and automatic means for performing in selected sequence, the water circulating means operation-the operation of moving the member out of Said normal position, and the operations of rotating the cylinder at said low speed and at said higher speed, said automatic means being operative to effect a return of the member to said normal position for a succeeding operation of the machine.

2. The laundry machine of claim 1 and including means for circulating air through the cylinder after completing the moisture extracting operation, said automatic means operating in said selected sequence the air circulating means.

3. The laundry machine of claim 1 and including means for circulating heated air through the cylinder upon completing the moisture er:- tracting operation, said automatic means operating in said selected sequence the said air cir culating means.

4. A clothes distributing and drying apparatus adapted for high speed centrifugal drying of we. ter-saturated fabric articles, said apparatus com.. prising a perforated cylinder for both tumbling and centrifugally drying said articles and arranged for rotation on a horizontal axis, means to rotate said cylinder at a speed to effect tumbling of said articles therein, a pressure disc mov able axially in said cylinder, drive means to actuate said pressure disc against the articles while tumbling so as to concentrate them into a limited portion of said cylinder preparatory to high speed centrifugal drying operations so as to effect a substantially balanced distribution of such articles about such axis of rotation, means for thereafter institutin high speed rotation of said cylinder whereby said articles are centrifugally forced outwardly towards the periphery of said cylinder and the water saturating said articles is centrifugally ejected from the cylinder perforations, means to retract said pressure disc so as to release sucharticles from said limited portion of said cylinder, means to thereafter decrease the speed of rotation of said cylinder to a tumbling speed, and means to circulate heated-air against said centrifugally dried and tumbling articles so as to substantially remove all water therefrom.

5. A clothesdistrlbuting and drying apparatus adapted for high speed centrifugal drying of water saturated fabric articles, said apparatus comprising a perforated cylinder for both tumbling and centrifugally dr'ying said articles and arranged for rotation on a horizontal axis, means to rotate said cylinder at a speed to eflect tumbling of said articles therein, a pressure disc movable axially in said cylinder, drive means to actuate said pressure disc against the articles while tumbling so as to concentrate them into a limited portion of said cylinder preparatory to high speed centrifugal drying operations so as to effect a substantially balanced distribution of such articles about such axis of rotation, means for thereafter instituting high speed rotation of said cylinder whereby said articles are centrifugally forced outwardly towards the periphery of said cylinder and the water saturating said articles is centrifugally ejected from the cylinder perforations, means to retract said pressure 'disc so as to release such articles from said limited portion of said cylinder, means to thereafter decrease the speed of rotation of said cylinder to a tumbling speed, means to circulate heated air against said centrifugally dried and tumbling articles so as to substantiall remove all water therefrom, and timing means for automatically instituting in selected sequence the tumbling speed rotation of said cylinder while actuating said pressure disc, the retraction of said pressure disc, the decrease of cylinder rotation speed to a tumbling speed, and the circulation of heated air against said tumbling articles thereafter.

6. In a cleaning machine having a cylinder rotatable in a bearing arranged at one end of the cylinder, said cylinder being operated at a low speed for a cleaning operation and at a relatively higher speed for a centrifugal drying operation, a member normall disposed at the other end of the cylinder for the cleaning operation, and fluid operated means for automatically moving the member toward the bearing end for the centrifugal drying operation.

LEOM. KAHN.

REFERENCES Cl'iiEl) The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 20,369 Quimby May 25, 1858 323,073 Postlethwaite July 28, 1885 447,520 Thorp Mar. 3, 1891 452,129 Garrison May 12, 1891 545,747 Sunderland Sept. 3,1895 570,360 Acheson Oct. 27, 1896 597,716 Kwass Jan. 25, 1898 906,816 Nicolson .Dec. 15, 1908 1,543,840 Grigoleit June 30, 1925 1,849,283 Crane Mar. 15, 1932 1,956,589 Perry May 1, 1934 2,005,031 Hutchins Sept. 22, 1936 2,080,924 Logan et al Ma 18, 1937 2,150,638 Scott Mar. 14, 1939 2,225,407 Bassett Dec. 17, 1940 2,230,345 Bradbury Feb. 4, 1941 2,274,121

Bendix Feb. 24. 1942 

